Facial capture managing access to resources by a device

ABSTRACT

Disclosed are various embodiments for controlling access to resources by a client device. Methods may include receiving a user request to access a resource on the device and determining whether the resource requires a facial capture. If the resource requires a facial capture, a camera of the device may be automatically activated to capture an image and the resource may be rendered on the device. In some cases, access to the resource may be limited based on whether the image includes a face or not. A record associating the image and the requested resource may be stored, for example, on the device or on a remote server.

BACKGROUND

Controlling access to and distribution of resources, such as documents,databases, and executable applications, in a networked environment iscritical to ensure that only authorized users and network-connecteddevices may gain access to sensitive information. Depending on thesensitivity of a given resource, an array of authorization rules may benecessary to ensure that the resource is adequately protected. Someresources may only require ensuring that the proper user is requestingthe resource. Other resources may require compliance with more stringentauthorization rules, such as determining whether an appropriatetransport protocol is used (i.e., http and/or https) by the requestingdevice, determining whether access to the resource is permitted for aspecified duration or at a given time, determining whether the resourceis accessed from a secured device, etc.

Some prior resource management systems may grant access to enterpriseresources based in part on user access credentials, such as usernamesand passwords. Additional security may be provided by requiring thatauthorized usernames and passwords be submitted using specific clientdevices (e.g., identified by approved device identifiers) and/or thatsuch client devices comply with certain configuration requirements orother rules associated with the enterprise resources to be accessed.However, there may also be a need, particularly with respect to certainsensitive resources, to produce an even more comprehensive record of whothe actual person was that accessed the resource. Accordingly, theinventors have proposed the following systems and methods to provide, atleast in some aspects, methods of storing images, such as facial captureimages, in association with resource access records.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The following systems and methods provide solutions for documenting theaccess and rendering of resources by client devices, including forcingimage capture by the client device as part of accessing and renderingcertain resources. Among other things, the present subject matter mayprovide the ability to store a record that includes an image, such as afacial capture, along with an identifier of the accessed resource. Sucha record may be stored on the device and/or on a remote server. Therecord may include, for example, a time and date that the resource wasaccessed, information that indicates a version of the resource, a copyof the resource, a copy of the image, links to the resource and/orimage, hashes of the resource and/or image, etc.

According to certain embodiments, methods of managing access toresources by a device may include one or more steps of receiving a userrequest to access a resource, and in response to the request to accessthe resource, activating a camera of the device to capture an image. Theactivating of the camera may be based on a determination that at leastone of the resource, or an application attempting to access theresource, requires a facial capture record. The resource may include,for example, one or more of an application, a computer folder, a datafile, an electronic document, a profile, etc. In some embodiments, adetermination may be made as to whether the image includes a user'sface. If the image includes a face, then access to the resource may beallowed. If the image does not include a face, the request to access theresource may be refused. A failure notification may be sent from thedevice to a remote server if the image does not include a face, or ifthe resource access request fails for any other reason. In response, theserver may initiate a remedial action, such as sending a message to theuser of the device (e.g., a text message) indicating that the resourceaccess has failed and/or a reason for the access failure, wiping datafrom the device, locking the device, etc.

In some embodiments, the request to access the resource may include atleast one of a request to open an application on the device, a requestto access or render data stored on the device, a request to open anenterprise application residing at least partially on a network, and/ora request to access or render data that is stored at least partially ona network. When the resource is located, partially or completely, on aremote server, the device may send a request to access the resource tothe remote server. The request to the remote server may be based onwhether the image includes a face. In some embodiments, the device mayalso send the remote server a copy of the image associated with theresource request.

As will be appreciated from the foregoing, various embodiments mayinclude, for example, the requested resource and the image being storedon the device, the requested resource being stored on a remote serverand the image being stored on the device, the requested resource beingstored on the device and a copy of the image being stored on a remoteserver, and the requested resource and a copy of the image being storedon the server.

In some embodiments, a copy of the image, a copy of the resource and/orthe record associating the image and the resource may be saved with acertificate. The certificate may be configured to authenticate, forexample, one or more of the image having been captured by the specificdevice, the image having been captured at a certain time and date, theresource having been rendered by the specific device, and/or theresource having been rendered at a certain time and date.

According to some embodiments, methods of managing access to resourcesby a device may include one or more steps of receiving a user request toaccess a resource, determining whether the resource requires a facialcapture, and activating a camera of the device to capture an image basedon whether the resource requires a facial capture. In some embodiments,the resource may be rendered on the device substantiallycontemporaneously with, or after, the image capture. In someembodiments, a record associating the image and the requested resourcemay be stored on the device and/or on a remote server.

According to some embodiments, methods of managing access to resourceson a server may include one or more steps of receiving a user requestfrom a client device to access a server resource, determining whetherthe user request is valid, providing the server resource to the clientdevice, and receiving an image associated with the request from theclient device. In some embodiments, a record may be stored on the serverassociating the image and the resource provided to the client device. Insome embodiments, the server may send the client device an indicationthat the requested resource requires a facial capture record. This maybe included, for example, in a file including the resource, or as aseparate communication to the client device, such as a distributionrule.

According to certain embodiments, the various method steps and apparatusfunctions described herein may be embodied on non-transitory electronicstorage medium in the form of computer-readable instructions that, whenexecuted by a microprocessor, cause a computer system perform thedescribed functions and steps.

Additional features, advantages, and embodiments may be set forth orapparent from consideration of the following detailed description,drawings, and claims. Moreover, it is to be understood that both theforegoing summary and the following detailed description are provided byway of example only and intended to provide further explanation withoutlimiting the scope of the claimed subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Many aspects of the present disclosure can be better understood withreference to the following diagrams. The drawings are not necessarily toscale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating certainfeatures of the disclosure. Moreover, in the drawings, like referencenumerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a networked environment according tocertain embodiments consistent with the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an application accesscontrol process and image capture in the networked environment of FIG.1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

It is to be understood that the subject matter disclosed and claimedherein is not limited to the particular methodology, protocols, etc.described herein, as the skilled artisan will recognize that these mayvary in different embodiments. It is also to be understood that theterminology used herein is used for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only, and is not intended to limit the scope of the subjectmatter disclosed and claimed herein. It also is to be noted that as usedherein and in the appended claims, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and“the” include the plural reference unless the context clearly dictatesotherwise. Thus, for example, a reference to “an image” is a referenceto one or more images and equivalents thereof known to those skilled inthe art.

The embodiments disclosed herein and the various features andadvantageous details thereof are explained more fully with reference tothe non-limiting embodiments and examples that are described and/orillustrated in the accompanying drawings and detailed in the followingdescription. Descriptions of well-known components and computingtechniques may be omitted so as to not unnecessarily obscure thedescribed embodiments. The examples used herein are intended merely tofacilitate an understanding of ways in which the subject matterdisclosed and claimed herein may be practiced and to further enablethose of skill in the art to practice various embodiments.

Disclosed are various embodiments for a system and associated devicesand methods for controlling access to resources such as computerapplications and electronic data. In some embodiments, a deviceautomatically captures an image in coordination with accessing, orattempting to access, certain resources. As described further herein,the captured image may be used in various ways including, for example,as a prerequisite for accessing the resource, as a record that aparticular person accessed a given resource at a particular time anddate, as an access check for future rendering on a locally storedresource, etc.

As described further herein, the captured image may be analyzed invarious ways, and at different levels of technical sophistication. Forexample, the captured image may be analyzed to determine whether theimage includes a face, or may be compared to another image to determinewhether the images include the same face. With respect to determiningwhether the image includes a face, examples of this type of technologycan be found, for example, in modem digital cameras, which oftenincorporate a facial detection system that allows the camera to focusand measure exposure on the face of the subject. Similar techniques, aswell as more advanced facial recognition methods, may be used herein todetermine if an image includes a face.

The invention may also use a facial recognition system, which isgenerally understood as a computer application for automaticallyidentifying and/or verifying a person from a digital image or videoframe. Such systems typically use algorithms that extract features, orlandmarks, from an image, and determine correspondence with a featurethreshold and/or compare selected features with one or more referenceimages. An algorithm may analyze, for example, the relative position,size, and/or shape of the eyes, nose, cheekbones, and jaw. The level ofconsistency required for determining whether an image includes a face,or whether the face matches the face from another image, can be setaccording to the requirements of the system and the level of confidenceneeded, e.g. from a relatively low level to a level of near certainty.

Popular recognition algorithms include Principal Component Analysisusing Eigenfaces, Linear Discriminate Analysis, Elastic Bunch GraphMatching using the Fisherface algorithm, the Hidden Markov model, theMultilinear Subspace Learning using tensor representation, and theneuronal motivated dynamic link matching. Systems using 3-D facialrecognition are also contemplated in some embodiments, and may findfurther applicability as more and more user devices are provided withthe ability to capture, or otherwise produce, 3-D images.

FIG. 1 illustrates a networked environment 100 according to variousembodiments. The networked environment 100 includes a network 110, aclient device 120, and a distribution server 150. The network 110 may beor include, for example, any type of wireless network such as a wirelesslocal area network (WLAN), a wireless wide area network (WWAN), or anyother type of wireless network now known or later developed.Additionally, the network 110 may be or include the Internet, intranets,extranets, microwave networks, satellite communications, cellularsystems, PCS, infrared communications, global area networks, or othersuitable networks, etc., or any combination of two or more suchnetworks. In some embodiments, the network 110 facilitates transmissionof resources 165 between one or more client devices 120 and adistribution server 150.

The distribution server 150 may comprise, for example, a server computeror any other system providing distribution capability. For purposes ofconvenience, the distribution server 150 is referred to herein in thesingular. Even though the distribution server 150 is referred to in thesingular, it is understood that a plurality of distribution servers 150may be employed in the arrangements as descried herein. The componentsexecuted on the distribution server 150, for example, include thedistribution service 174 and other applications, services, processes,systems, engines, or functionality not disclosed in detail herein. Thedistribution service 174 may be executed to provide resources 165 storedin a data store 153 to a requesting client device 120 based on, forexample, resource grouping identifiers 154 and distribution rules 171,as will be described.

The client device 120 may be a desktop computer, a laptop computer, apersonal digital assistant, a cellular telephone, a set-top box, a musicplayer, a web pad, a tablet computer system, a game console, and/oranother device with like capability. The client device 120 may include atwo-way communication component, such as a wired network connectivitycomponent, an Ethernet network adapter, a modem, and/or the like, a PCI(Peripheral Component Interconnect) card, USB (Universal Serial Bus)interface, PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card InternationalAssociation) card, SDIO (Secure Digital Input-Output) card, NewCard,Cardbus, a modem, a wireless radio transceiver, and/or the like. Theclient device 120 may thus be operable to communicate via wiredconnection with the distribution server 150 with the aid of the wirednetwork connectivity component. The client device 120 may be furtheroperable to communicate wirelessly with the distribution server 150 withthe aid of the wireless network connectivity component. Additionally,the client device 120 may further comprise a camera 139 for capturingstill images and/or videos, a memory for storing data and applications,a processor for executing applications stored in memory, and a localinterface such as a bus.

The client device 120 may store, in a data store 122, a profile 123,user credentials 132, resources 135, and other data. Resources 135 mayinclude any electronic data, such as databases, applications, textfiles, word processor files, spreadsheet files, presentation files,graphic files, audio files, photographic files, video files,applications and application files, and/or the like. More specifically,resources 135 may include: data files, audio files, video files,three-dimensional image files, raster image files, vector image files,page layout files, spreadsheet files, database files, executable files,CAD files, web files, plug-in files, font files, system files, settingsfiles, encoded files, compressed files, disk image files, developerfiles, backup files, and/or any other files.

As noted, the distribution server 150 also includes a data store 153,which may include may include resources 165, as well as resourcegrouping identifiers 154, and/or other data. In some embodiments, theresources 165 referenced herein may include any electronic data, such asdatabases, applications, text files, word processor files, spreadsheetfiles, presentation files, graphic files, audio files, photographicfiles, video files, applications and application files, and/or the like.More specifically, resources 165 may include: data files, audio files,video files, three-dimensional image files, raster image files, vectorimage files, page layout files, spreadsheet files, database files,executable files, CAD files, web files, plug-in files, font files,system files, settings files, encoded files, compressed files, diskimage files, developer files, backup files, and/or any other files. Insome cases, the resources 135 stored on the client device may be copiesor instances of resources 165 stored on the server 150

In certain embodiments, the data store 122 of the client device 120 mayalso include access records 138 that may include records, or logs,including information about certain resources 135 and/or resources 165being, or having been, accessed by the client device 120. The data store153 of the distribution server 150 may also include access records 172reflecting the same or similar information.

Access records 138 or 172 may include information that associates anaccessed resource, e.g. from among the resource records 135 or resources165, and a captured image, as described further herein. The records, orlogs, that associate an accessed resource and a captured image may takevarious forms and may include different levels of detail. For example,the record may include one or more of a copy of the accessed resource, acopy of the captured image, a certificate confirming the accuracy and/oraccess time and date of the resource copy, a certificate confirming theaccuracy and/or capture time of the image copy, a hash identifier of theresource and/or image, etc. It should be understood that a “copy” of animage or resource need not be an exact reproduction of the original andmay include, for example, lower resolution versions, compressedversions, hash functions or other representations sufficient to identifythe original image or resource from the “copy” or to perform such otherfunctions as may be required.

The client device 120 may be configured to execute various applications.For example, the client device 120 may be configured to executeapplications such as web browsing applications, email applications,instant messaging applications, and/or other applications capable ofreceiving and/or rendering resources 135 or 165 on a display 136associated with the client device 120. Any applications capable ofreceiving and/or rendering resources on a display 136 is generallyreferred to herein as a “client side application” 126, even though some,or all, of the application program itself may reside on non-transitorystorage medium of any device or server networked to the client device120.

In some embodiments, a client side application 126 may further includeinstructions that recognize when a given resource requires an imagecapture to allow access to the resource, and that initiate an imagecapture by the camera 139. The client side application 126 may beconfigured to recognize that a given resource requires an image capture,for example, based on an identifier of the resource, a resource groupidentifier 154, or specific instructions provided in association withthe resource, such as a distribution rule 171. In some embodiments, theclient side application 126 may be configured to require an imagecapture for any use of the application 126. In such situations, thedistribution service 174 (described below) may be configured to makeselected resources available only to the application 126 that alwaysrequires image capture, thereby ensuring that the image capture rule isapplied whenever such resources are accessed. Client side application126 may include various levels of execution code. For example, a set ofinstructions may be included in the client side application 126 that areexecuted when the application is called. This set of instructions mayinclude a routine for initiating an image capture via camera 139 and/orfor identifying if a called resource requires an image capture.

Rules related to an application and image capture requirements may alsobe included in a profile 123, and, may be set by a service provider thatprovides the client side application 126, or that provides additionalcode for the client side application 126 to perform the image capturefunction and associated record storage. Profile 123 may also include acertificate, which may represent either, or both, of an algorithm forgenerating a unique certificate and/or the generated certificate itself.For example, in certain operating systems, the system may recognize thata profile 123 includes a root or intermediate certificate, andautomatically store the certificate in a trust store, or certificatestore.

The certificate may be used to sign any images, or other resources, asdiscussed herein, and may, for example, uniquely associate the signedresource with the client device 120 or application 126. For example, adigital signature based on the certificate may be further based on oneor more of a unique hardware identifier such as a GUID (Globally UniqueIdentifier), UUID (Universally Unique Identifier), UDID (Unique DeviceIdentifier), serial number, IMEI (Internationally Mobile EquipmentIdentity), Wi-Fi MAC (Media Access Control) address, Bluetooth MACaddress, a CPU ID, and/or the like, or any combination of two or moresuch hardware identifiers.

The user credentials 132 may uniquely identify the user of the clientdevice 120. For example, the user credentials 132 may include ausername, a password, and/or biometric data related to facialrecognition, retina recognition, fingerprint recognition, and the like.User credentials 132 may be input by a user via any suitable client sideapplication and may be stored in the data store 122 of the client device120. Accordingly, user credentials 132 may be retrieved from the datastore 122 or may be input by a user in connection with a request foraccess to a resource 135, 165.

In some embodiments, access controls and image capture may be performedon the client device 120. For example, a client side application 126 maybe configured to access locally stored resources 135. If a user attemptsto open a resource 135 that requires an image capture, the client sideapplication 126 may initiate the necessary steps on client device 120.Likewise, if a client side application 126 is configured to requireimage capture for all use of the application, it may initiate thenecessary steps on client device 120 whenever the application is called.In some embodiments, client side application 126 may also be configuredto access remotely stored resources, such as resources 165. If a userattempts to access a resource 165 that requires an image capture orother validation, the distribution service 174 may provide informationsufficient for client side application 126 to initiate the necessarysteps. One example that may include such features is described withreference to FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an application accesscontrol and image capture in the networked environment of FIG. 1. Asshown in FIG. 2, the method may begin with step 200, in which anapplication is called on a client device, such as client device 120 fromFIG. 1. This may include, for example, a user request to open anapplication, or to open a file that requires an application that is notcurrently running. In embodiments where the request to access theresource includes a request to open an application, the application maybe referred to as the “called application.” In certain embodiments, therequest may initiate a limited opening or access to the calledapplication in order to execute instructions that identify whether animage capture is required, as discussed further below. The method maycontinue with step 205.

In step 205, a determination is made as to whether an image capture isrequired to open the called application. This determination may be made,for example, based on code included in the called application, by way ofprofile information set on the device, and/or by controls on a remoteserver, such as when the called application interacts with a remoteserver to execute code and/or access resources.

If it is determined that image capture is required, then the method mayproceed to step 210. In step 210, instructions are provided to thedevice OS, or other application, to capture an image using a camera ofthe device. In some embodiments, it may be preferable to perform somelevel of validation that the captured image complies with one or moreparameters, such as whether the image includes a face or whether a facein the image matches a face from another image. In such cases, themethod may proceed from step 210 to step 215, where image compliance isdetermined. In other cases, the method may proceed from step 210directly to step 230, where the application is opened, without checkingthe captured image for compliance.

In optional step 215, compliance of the captured image may be determinedaccording to various factors that may be set, for example, by a serviceprovider that manages the called application, or that providesadditional code for the called application to implement the imagecapture functionality (e.g., code in the form of a wrapper, plugin, orscript for the called application or code distributed through an update,service pack or software development kit and added to the calledapplication, etc.). As noted above, such compliance factors may includewhether the image includes a face, or whether a face in the imagematches a face from another image. Embodiments may also include settinga compliance level by which such parameters are judged, for example torequire greater certainty that the image includes a face, or that a facein the image matches a face from another image. Other complianceparameters are also possible including, for example, brightness,contrast or other image attributes by which the quality of the image maybe assessed. In some embodiments, different applications on the devicemay be assigned different parameters and/or compliance levels.

If the image is determined not to comply with the necessary complianceparameters, the method may proceed with step 220. In step 220, adetermination may be made as to whether the image capture process shouldbe repeated. This may involve, for example, one or more of providing theuser with an option to repeat the process, logging a number of failedattempts and/or comparing the number of failed attempts against apredetermined number of allowable attempts, sending a message to aremote server for a determination as to whether to allow additionalattempts, etc. If the determination is made that another image captureis to be attempted, the method may return to step 210 and repeat theimage capture process.

If the determination is made that another image capture is not to beattempted, the method may proceed with step 225. In step 225, a numberof options are possible. Generally speaking, step 225 may ensure thatthe request to open the application is denied, at least temporarily,until the problem with the image capture compliance is resolved. Thismay involve, for example, the client device displaying an alert to theuser with, or without, instructions for correcting the problem, theclient device sending an alert to the distribution server, thedistribution server suspending communication with the client device, thedistribution server sending an alert to the client device, with, orwithout, instructions for correcting the problem, etc.

In some embodiments, the client device 120 and/or distribution server150 may initiate corrective and/or remedial measures as part of step225, such as on the client device 120. For example, the user of clientdevice 120 may agree to certain restrictions or remedial measures whenthe called application is first installed, that go into effect if animage capture check fails. The called application or another client sideapplication 126 may be configured to automatically implement certaincorrective and/or remedial measures or to do so in response to a commandfrom the distribution service 174. Such measures may include deletingany local resources that were originally accessed using the imagecapture function and/or the called application, disabling enterpriseresources 165 such as certain enterprise applications requiring imagecapture, etc. In step 225 an alert may be sent to the user and/orservice manager. The alert may include one or more of an identificationof the application that did not open, the image capture parameter wasnon-compliant, user identification, device identification, or otherinformation.

It should be noted that, although only a single image capture step 210and compliance step 215 are depicted in FIG. 2, as sequentiallyhappening in a certain order, various embodiments are not limited tosuch operations. For example, image capture and/or compliance may beperformed while an application is open, for example, to provide anongoing video stream, intermittent image capture of a user accessing theapplication, and/or an image capture when the application is closed.Depending, for example, on a service provider's preferences, this mayallow for continuous or intermittent monitoring, and associated storageas discussed further below, while the application is running, and/orwhen the application is closed.

Returning to step 215, if the image is determined to comply with thenecessary compliance parameters, the method may proceed with step 230.In step 230, the called application may be opened. It should be notedthat, based on the processing power of current user devices, and thesophistication of automated facial recognition techniques, it may bepossible for steps 205, 210, 215 and 230 to happen in substantially realtime. That is, when the application is called, the client device maydetermine that an image capture is required, capture the image,determine image compliance and open the application with little to nodiscernible lag in presenting the application to the user. This processcan be performed even more seamlessly when the image is not tested forcompliance. In such circumstances, the image capture and applicationopening may be performed substantially contemporaneously, depending onthe processing ability of the device. In some embodiments, image capturemay be performed when the application is opened, and any necessary imagecompliance, and/or remedial steps, may be performed after theapplication is opened.

The method may continue with step 235, in which a record associating thecalled application and the captured image are stored. The records, orlogs, that associate a called application and a captured image may takevarious forms and may include different levels of detail. For example,the record may include one or more of a an application identifier, acopy of the captured image, a certificate or other data confirming theaccess time and date of the called application, a certificate confirmingthe accuracy and/or capture time of the image copy, a hash identifier ofthe application and/or image, links to the application and/or image,etc. The record may be stored locally on the device, such as in accessrecords 138 shown in FIG. 1, and/or may be stored on a remote server,such as in access records 172 also shown in FIG. 1.

It should be noted that, in certain embodiments, image compliance step215 may include a facial recognition check that compares the currentcaptured image with a previously stored image associated with the calledapplication, for example an image copy stored in access records 138 or172. This may allow, for example, certain sensitive applications to belinked to a particular user via facial recognition such that only thatuser is allowed to open the application after an initial facial capturelinks the user's face and the called application.

It should be further noted that similar records may be stored in theevent that the image capture compliance fails and the called applicationis not opened, e.g. in step 225. Such records may be advantageouslyused, for example, by a service provider to determine whether aparticular device is repeatedly attempting to access an application in anon-compliant manner. Such records may be used in determining what, ifany, remedial steps are appropriate in step 225, such as remotelydisabling an application, remotely wiping applications or data from adevice, sending alerts to an enterprise device manager, etc.

The method may proceed with step 240, in which the application requestsaccess to a resource. The resource may include, for example, one or moreof another application, a computer folder, a data file, an electronicdocument, a profile, or other resources described herein. In step 240, aclient side application, such as application 126 shown in FIG. 1,requests access to resources which may be stored locally on the device,or remotely on a server, such as distribution server 150 shown inFIG. 1. For example, with respect to a request for remotely storedresources, a client side application 126 may be executed to render auser interface 137 on the display 136 that provides access to theresources 165, e.g. by transmitting request 177 to the distributionserver 150.

In step 245, a determination is made as to whether an image capture isrequired to access the requested resource. This determination may bemade, for example, based on a resource identifier, resource groupidentifiers that apply to the requested resource, distribution rulesthat apply to the requested resource, code included in the calledapplication, and/or instructions provide by a remote server, such aswhen the called application interacts with a remote server to access therequested resource. In some embodiments, the server may send the clientdevice an indication that the requested resource requires a facialcapture record. This may be included, for example, in a file includingthe resource, or as a separate communication to the client device, suchas a distribution rule 171.

As noted previously, in the context of requesting access to certainlocal or network data, portions of the requested data, or otherassociated data, may be accessed for purposes of identifying whetheraccessing the requested data requires an image capture, and any otherconfirmation, for rendering, but the requested data may not be fully“accessed” by the user until the image capture and any necessaryconfirmation are successfully completed. The determination may befurther based on user specific, account specific, or device specificinformation, such that different requirements, and/or compliance levels,may be applied by the system to different users, accounts and/ordevices. For example, account administrators or managed devices may beallowed access to applications or other resources without facial captureor with a low-compliance level, whereas lower-level users and/or usersof unmanaged devices may be required to satisfy a facial captureparameter with a relatively high compliance level.

If it is determined that image capture is required, then the method mayproceed to step 250. In step 250, instructions are provided to thedevice OS, or other application, to capture an image using a camera ofthe device. In some embodiments, it may be preferable to perform somelevel of validation that the captured image complies with one or moreparameters, such as whether the image includes a face or whether a facein the image matches a face from another image. In such cases, themethod may proceed to step 255, where image compliance is determined. Inother cases, the method may proceed directly to step 270, where accessto the resource is provided, without checking the captured image forcompliance.

In optional step 255, compliance of the captured image may be determinedaccording to various factors and in procedures similar to thosedescribed above with respect to step 215. In certain embodiments, theclient device may send the captured image, or a copy of the capturedimage, to the distribution service 174, whether or not a compliancecheck is required. In such circumstances, the distribution service 174may be configured to, for example, certify the compliance of the image,and/or to store the copy of the image in association with the resourcerequest or requested resource, as described further herein.

If the image is determined not to comply with the necessary complianceparameters, the method may proceed with step 260. In step 260, adetermination is made as to whether the image capture process should berepeated. This may involve, for example, one or more of providing theuser with an option to repeat the process, logging a number of failedattempts and/or comparing the number of failed attempts against apredetermined number of allowable attempts, sending a message to aremote server for a determination as to whether to allow additionalattempts, etc. If the determination is made that another image captureis to be attempted, the method may return to step 250 and repeat theimage capture process.

If the determination is made that another image capture is not to beattempted, the method may proceed with step 265. In step 265, a numberof options are possible. Generally speaking, step 225 may ensure thatthe request to access the resource is denied, at least temporarily,until the problem with the image capture compliance is resolved. Thismay involve steps similar to those discussed above with respect to step225. In some embodiments, an alert or notification may be sent from thedevice to a managing server if a required image capture fails toexecute, if it is determined that a required image does not include aface, or any other failure that prohibits access to the requestedresource.

In some embodiments, the client device 120 and/or distribution service174 may initiate corrective and/or remedial measures as part of step265, such as on the client device 120. For example, the user of clientdevice 120 may agree to certain restrictions or remedial measures whenthe called application is first installed, that go into effect if animage capture check fails. The called client application or anotherclient side application 126 may be configured to automatically implementcertain corrective and/or remedial measures or to do so in response to acommand from the distribution service 174. Such measures may includedeleting any local resources that were originally accessed using theimage capture function and/or the called application, blockingenterprise resources 165 requiring image capture from the device, etc.In step 265 an alert may be sent to the user and/or service manager. Thealert may include one or more of an identification of the requestedresource, the image capture parameter that was non-compliant, a useridentification, a device identification, or other information.

It should be noted that, although only a single image capture step 250and compliance step 255 are depicted in FIG. 2, as sequentiallyhappening in a certain order, some embodiments are not limited to suchoperations. For example, image capture and/or compliance may beperformed while a resource is open, for example, to provide an ongoingvideo stream, intermittent image capture of a user accessing theresource, and/or an image capture when the resource is closed.Depending, for example, on a service provider's preferences, this mayallow for continuous or intermittent monitoring, and associated storageas discussed further below, while the resource is being rendered to theuser, and/or when the resource is closed. In certain embodiments, theimage or video capture may be sent to a remote server substantiallycontemporaneously while the resource is being accessed. In someembodiments, image capture may be performed when the resource isrendered on the client device, and any necessary image compliance,and/or remedial steps, may be performed after the resource is rendered.

Returning to step 255, if the image is determined to comply with thenecessary compliance parameters, or if no compliance check is necessary,the method may proceed with step 270. In step 270, all resourcescorresponding to the requested resource may be identified and access tothe identified resources may be provided. As noted previously, access tocertain resources may be further restricted by additional protocols thatmust be satisfied, and may be performed as part of step 270. Forexample, in addition to satisfying the image capture complianceparameters, a given resource may also require user credentials, deviceidentifiers, profile compliance, compliance with distribution rules 171,or other measures to allow the access in step 270.

In some embodiments, an image capture and/or validation, as describedherein, may be all that is implemented in order to grant the applicationgeneral access to a group of local or remote resources. However, theconcepts disclosed herein may also be applied in environments thatrequire various other access controls in addition to, or as alternativesto, the image capture and/or validation, as discussed further below. Forexample, in certain embodiments, a determination may be made as towhether the requesting application itself complies with the necessarycriteria to access the requested resource. This may include, forexample, checks to ensure that an application has been updated to acurrent version, that the request includes valid user credentials, thatthe request is not coming from a blacklisted address, etc.

Various methods of controlling access and identifying resources that aresubject to a particular request may be used. For example, such methodsmay use resource grouping identifiers 154, which may represent uniqueidentifiers for previously determined resource groupings, and may beused to determine which resources 165 are served up to the user of theclient device 120. In some embodiments, the distribution service 174determines which resources 165 to provide based on the resource groupingidentifiers 154 associated with each resource 165. For instance, in thecase of a managed client device 120, the distribution service 174 mayfirst determine which resource grouping identifiers 154 are associatedwith user credentials 132 included in a request 177. In the case of anunmanaged client device, the distribution service 174 may firstdetermine which resource grouping identifiers 154 are associated withprofile or certificate information received from the client device 120.

Each resource grouping identifier 154 may be associated with a pairingof at least one of a plurality of approved user credentials and deviceidentifiers 156 and/or a pairing of at least one of a plurality ofapproved profiles and certificates 159. In some embodiment, thedistribution service 174 identifies one or more resources 165 associatedwith each one of the determined resource grouping identifiers 154. Insome embodiments, the distribution service 174 identifies the resource165 if the resource 165 is associated with all of the determinedresource grouping identifiers 154. Additionally or alternatively, insome embodiments, the distribution service 174 identifies the resource165 if it is associated with a threshold number of the resource groupingidentifiers 154. The distribution service 174 may then provide theidentified resources 165 to the client device 120 or otherwise allow theclient device to access such resources 165.

In some embodiments, each resource 165 may be associated with a listingof approved resource-grouping identifiers 168 and one or moredistribution rules 171. The listing of approved resource-groupingidentifiers 168 may include at least some of the resource-groupingidentifiers 154 that regulate access to the respective resource. Thelisting of approved resource-grouping identifiers 168 may bepredetermined by an administrator entity. For instance, theadministrator entity may specify which of the resource-groupingidentifiers 168 may be used to access to a respective one or more of theresources 165. Additionally or alternatively, distribution rules 171 mayregulate how an entity having a combination of approved user credentialsand device identifier may access the respective resource 165. Forexample, in some embodiments, the distribution rules 171 may describe arequired and/or a permitted state that an accessing client device 120may satisfy in order for the client device 120 to be permitted access tothe resource 165. Non-limiting examples of distribution rules 171 mayinclude (but are not) limited to hardware requirements, softwarerequirements, configuration requirements, maintenance requirements of acomputing device, and/or requirements related to the resource 165.

In certain embodiments, the distribution service 174 may facilitateaccessing the resources 165 for the client device 120. In someembodiments, the requested resource(s) may be provided to client sideapplication 126 based on receiving the request, a compliant associatedimage, and any other necessary validation without further input from theuser, e.g. the distribution service 174 automatically transmits theidentified resources 165 that the client device 120 is authorized toreceive. In some embodiments, the distribution service 174 may providean operable hyperlink, or the like, to the client device 120, that istied to a specific client side application. For instance, the clientdevice 120 may receive an indication that the resource 165 is availablefor download and may transmit a request to the distribution service 174for downloading the applicable resource 165. Upon receiving the request,the distribution service 165 may transmit the resource 165 to the clientdevice 120.

Other access facilitating methods may include, for example, grantingfolder access, application downloads and/or access, etc. For example,the distribution service 174 may provide an appropriate user interfaceto the client device 120. The distribution service 174 may determine theresource grouping identifiers 154 of the resources 165 accessible usingthe profile 123 from the client device 120. In some embodiments, thedistribution service 174 determines the resource grouping identifiers154 based on the required certificate. For instance, each resourcegrouping identifier 154 may be associated with a profile/certificate.The distribution service 174 may determine one or more resource groupingidentifiers 154 associated with the profile/certificate, as describedabove.

The method may continue with step 275 in which the resource is renderedon the client device, for example, on the display 136 of the clientdevice 120. In some embodiments, the resources 165 may be presented in auser interface 137 by decompressing compressed files and presenting theuncompressed files, mounting disk image files and presenting the mountedimage files, running executable files and presenting the executed files,by enabling a data search of the resources 165 and presenting thefeatured output in a user interface, by calling on another applicationon the client device 120 to respond to data links contained within theresources 165, and/or by transmitting a part or the whole of theresources 165 to another application on the client device 120.

In some embodiments, image and/or video capture may continue while theresource is being rendered. For example, still images may be capturedintermittently or a video stream may be saved in access records 138 or172, and/or streamed or otherwise transmitted to remote server 150. Ifmandated, compliance checks may be performed on some or all of suchintermittent images or video stream. In such embodiments, rendering ofthe resource may be suspended if any of the images or video stream failsthe compliance check, and the method may proceed, essentially as withstep 260, to allow repeated image capture and compliance steps, or toterminate the application and/or send alerts as in step 265.

The method may continue with step 235, in which a record associating thecalled application and the captured image are stored. The records, orlogs, that associate the resource provided to the client device and acaptured image may take various forms and may include different levelsof detail. For example, the record may include one or more of a resourceidentifier, a resource version number, an application identifier, a copyof the captured image, a certificate or other data confirming the accesstime and date of the resource, a certificate or other data confirmingthe resource having been rendered by the specific device, a certificateconfirming the accuracy and/or capture time of the image copy, a hashidentifier of the resource and/or image, links to the resource and/orimage, etc. The record may be stored locally on the device, such as inaccess records 138 shown in FIG. 1, and/or may be stored on a remoteserver, such as in access records 172 also shown in FIG. 1.

It should be noted that, in certain embodiments, image compliance step255 may include a facial recognition check that compares the currentcaptured image or video frames with a previously stored image associatedwith the requested resource, preferably a resource 135 stored on theclient device 120. This may allow, for example, certain sensitiveresources to be linked to a particular user via facial recognition suchthat only that user is allowed to open the resource on the device afteran initial facial capture links the user's face and the resource.

It should be further noted that similar records may be stored in theevent that the image capture compliance fails and the called applicationis not opened, e.g. in step 265. Such records may be advantageouslyused, for example, by a service provider to determine whether aparticular device is repeatedly attempting to access a resource in anon-compliant manner. Such records may be used in determining what, ifany, remedial steps are appropriate in step 265, such as remotelydisabling an application, remotely wiping applications or otherresources from a device, sending alerts to an enterprise device manager,etc.

It should be appreciated that in some embodiments, the facial captureprocess described herein may be used in connection with attempts to opena called application on a client device 120 but not in connection withsubsequent attempts by the called application to access resources. Insuch cases, the facial capture process may involve only steps 200through 235 as shown and described with respect to FIG. 2. In someembodiments the facial capture process described herein may be used inconnection with attempts by a called application to access resources,but not in connection with attempts to open the called application. Insuch cases, the facial capture process may involve only steps 240through 280 as shown and described with respect to FIG. 2.

Although the distribution service 174, client side application 126, andother various systems described herein may be embodied in software orcode executed by general purpose hardware as discussed above, as analternative the same may also be embodied in dedicated hardware or acombination of software/general purpose hardware and dedicated hardware.If embodied in dedicated hardware, each can be implemented as a circuitor state machine that employs any one of or a combination of a number oftechnologies. These technologies may include, but are not limited to,discrete logic circuits having logic gates for implementing variouslogic functions upon an application of one or more data signals,application specific integrated circuits having appropriate logic gates,or other components, etc. Such technologies are generally well known bythose skilled in the art and, consequently, are not described in detailherein.

The flowchart of FIG. 2 may show certain functionality and operationsdescribed as performed by the distribution service 174 and client sideapplication 126, respectively. If embodied in software, each box mayrepresent a module, segment, or portion of code that comprises programinstructions to implement the specified logical function(s). The programinstructions may be embodied in the form of source code that compriseshuman-readable statements written in a programming language or machinecode that comprises numerical instructions recognizable by a suitableexecution system such as a processor in a computer system or othersystem. The machine code may be converted from the source code, etc. Ifembodied in hardware, each block may represent a circuit or a number ofinterconnected circuits to implement the specified logical function(s).

Although the flowchart of FIG. 2 shows a specific order of execution, itis understood that the order of execution may differ from that which isdepicted. For example, the order of execution of two or more steps maybe scrambled relative to the order shown. Also, two or more blocks shownin succession in FIG. 2 may be executed concurrently or with partialconcurrence. Further, in some embodiments, one or more of the stepsshown in FIG. 2 may be skipped or omitted. In addition, any number ofcounters, state variables, warning semaphores, or messages might beadded to the logical flow described herein, for purposes of enhancedutility, accounting, performance measurement, or providingtroubleshooting aids, etc. It is understood that all such variations arewithin the scope of the present disclosure.

Any logic or application described herein, including the distributionservice 174 and the client side application 126, or other processes andmodules running on distribution server 150 or client device 120, thatcomprises software or code can be embodied in any non-transitorycomputer-readable medium for use by or in connection with an instructionexecution system such as, for example, a processor in a computer systemor other system. In this sense, the logic may comprise, for example,statements including instructions and declarations that can be fetchedfrom the computer-readable medium and executed by the instructionexecution system. In the context of the present disclosure, a“computer-readable medium” can be any medium that can contain, store, ormaintain the logic or application described herein for use by or inconnection with the instruction execution system. The computer-readablemedium can comprise any one of many physical media such as, for example,magnetic, optical, or semiconductor media. More specific examples of asuitable computer-readable medium would include, but are not limited to,magnetic tapes, magnetic floppy diskettes, magnetic hard drives, memorycards, solid-state drives, USB flash drives, or optical discs. Also, thecomputer-readable medium may be a random access memory (RAM) including,for example, static random access memory (SRAM) and dynamic randomaccess memory (DRAM), or magnetic random access memory (MRAM). Inaddition, the computer-readable medium may be a read-only memory (ROM),a programmable read-only memory (PROM), an erasable programmableread-only memory (EPROM), an electrically erasable programmableread-only memory (EEPROM), or other type of memory device.

As used herein, a “profile” should be understood as referring to a filethat is recognizable by the operating system (OS) of a user device, thatdefines one or more device parameters, typically set by a servicemanager such as an MDM, and that may include an embedded certificatethat the OS will recognize and install for the device, such as in a“trust store” or “certificate store” or other suitable memory space (anyof which may be generically herein as a “trust store” for ease ofreference) of the device. Typically, the profile is formatted in amanner such that the particular OS is able to recognize and implementthe settings defined therein when installed by a user. For example, aprofile may be an XML file that contains settings (also referred to asparameters) to deploy to the OS of a client device. The parameters mayset and/or control a variety of device settings, functions and the like,e.g. passcode policies, email account configurations, calendar, contactaccounts, VPN settings, WiFi settings, restrictions on how and whatfeatures and components of the device can and cannot be used, etc. Ifthe profile is uninstalled, disabled, becomes corrupted or is otherwiseinactive, the OS will remove the corresponding certificate from itstrust store.

It should be emphasized that the above-described embodiments of thepresent disclosure are merely possible examples of implementations setforth for a clear understanding of the principles of the disclosure.Many variations and modifications may be made to the above-describedembodiment(s) without departing substantially from the spirit andprinciples of the disclosure. All such modifications and variations areintended to be included herein within the scope of this disclosure andprotected by the following claims.

Therefore, the following is claimed:
 1. A method of managing access toresources by a device, comprising: receiving a request to access aresource; determining whether the resource requires a facial capture;activating a camera of the device to capture an image based on saiddetermining; rendering the resource on the device; and storing a recordassociating the image and the requested resource.
 2. The method claim ofclaim 1, wherein the record includes a time and date that the resourcewas accessed, and information that indicates a version of the resource.3. The method of claim 2, wherein the resource includes at least one ofan application, a computer folder, a data file, an electronic document,and a profile.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the resource islocated, at least partially, remotely from the device, the methodfurther comprising sending a request to access the resource from thedevice to a remote server, and sending a copy of the captured image fromthe device to the remote server in association with the request.
 5. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the resource is located on the device and theimage is stored on the device.
 6. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: in response to capturing the image, determining that theimage comprises a face; and in response to determining that the imagecomprises the face, accessing the resource.
 7. The method of claim 6,wherein the resource is located, at least partially, on a remote serverand wherein accessing the resource comprises sending a request to accessthe resource to the remote server.
 8. The method of claim 6, furthercomprising: determining whether the image comprising the face matches anauthorized user's face; and in response to determining that the imagecomprising the face does not match an authorized user's face, denyaccess to the resource.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein activating thecamera is based on a determination that at least one of the resource, oran application attempting to access the resource, requires a facialcapture record.
 9. The method of claim 1, wherein the resource islocated, at least partially, on a remote server, the method furthercomprising: sending a request to access the resource to the remoteserver, the request including a copy of the captured image.
 10. A methodof managing access to resources on a server, comprising: receiving arequest from a client device to access a server resource; determiningwhether the request is valid; responsive to determining that the requestis valid, providing the server resource to the client device; receivingan image associated with the request from the client device; and storinga record on the server associating the image and the resource providedto the client device.
 11. The method of claim 10, wherein the recordincludes a time and date that the resource was accessed, and informationthat indicates a version of the resource.
 12. The method of claim 10,further comprising determining whether the image includes a face. 13.The method of claim 10, further comprising sending the client device anindication that the requested resource requires a facial capture record.14. The method of claim 10, wherein the resource includes at least oneof an application, a computer folder, a data file, an electronicdocument, and a profile.
 15. An apparatus, comprising: a two-waycommunication device; a camera; a display; and a processor, configuredto: receive a user request to access a resource; determine whether theresource requires a facial capture; activate the camera to capture animage based on said determining; render the resource on the display; andcause a record associating the image and the resource to be stored atleast one of locally on the apparatus or remotely.
 16. The apparatus ofclaim 15, wherein the record includes a time and date that the resourcewas accessed, and information that indicates a version of the resource.17. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the resource is located, at leastpartially, on a remote server, the processor further configured to senda request to access the resource to the remote server, and send a copyof the captured image associated with the request to the remote server.18. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein the resource includes at leastone of an application, a computer folder, a data file, an electronicdocument, and a profile.
 19. The apparatus of claim 15, wherein theprocessor is further configured to: in response to capturing the image,determine that the image includes a face; and in response to determiningthat the image includes the face, access the resource.